Wood’s MVP Case vs Abrams’ All-Star Surge

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On June 16th, yo, let's talk about the All-Star Ballot updates. CJ Abrams is straight up leading the National League short stops and votes, and his manager, Blake Butera, ain't surprised. Abrams is crushing it statistically, leading NL short stops in homers, RBIs, OPS, and a bunch of other advanced metrics.
He's even improved his walk rate and is hitting the ball harder than ever. Now, here's where it gets a little wild. James Wood, another Nats player, is sitting at seventh in the outfielder voting. Butera is baffled, man. Wood's numbers are insane, second best OPS in baseball behind Ohtani, and he's only 23 He's leading all players in runs scored and walks, and among NL outfielders, he's tops in homers, on base percentage, OPS, and a whole lot more. The manager is out here saying Wood should not only be an All-Star, but also in the MVP conversation. He's on pace for 45 homers and 130 walks, a feat that even Babe Ruth didn't hit until he was 25 It's wild to see his name next to guys who've been in the league for a decade, and he's still younger than them. Wood's numbers are putting him in a league company, but the fan votes aren't quite reflecting that yet. He's got a lot of ground to make up to crack the top six outfielders who advanced to the next phase of voting. It's a tough race, and the fans have until June 25th to cast their ballots. So, while Abrams is looking solid, Wood's situation is a real head-scratcher.
It makes you wonder what else a player has to do to get that recognition. We'll have to see if the voting shifts in the coming days.
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